“Anna-san, if we don’t go soon, it’s going to be dangerous~”
“I know~, it’s almost time, so wait~”
At the entrance of Anna’s house, Tomoya rushes Anna who is getting ready to leave.
“Mama-san is taking so long to get ready~”
Tomoya spoke to Yuna, who he was holding in his arms.
“Ma~ma.”
Yuna says with a smile.
“Sorry.”
Anna shows up after getting ready.
The three of them leave the house and get into the car.
A year has passed since the party.
Currently, Tomoya is Anna’s manager, president of Anna’s personal tax office, and Yuna’s babysitter.
After the party, Tomoya graduated from college, and on the day of his first day at the company in which he had been offered a job, he learnt that the president had run away at night and the company had collapsed.
Tomoya was at a loss, he tried to find a job, but it did not go well, and when he complained to Anna about it, she hired him, just when she was having trouble finding a manager.
The disaster turned out to be a blessing in disguise.
The salary was much better than his previous company, and more importantly, Tomoya was able to watch Yuna’s growth from her side, which was a wonderful environment.
Anna had been having trouble finding a manager because of her difficult personality, and Tomoya’s job loss was bad but good news for her.
She found a manager who knew her well, and the three of them spent much more time together, and of course, secretly enjoyed sex behind the scenes.
“Oh, I’m getting nervous …….”
“Don’t worry, I’ve done a lot of prep work for today. ……”
“Ugh, why did you take the quiz show?”
“The producer insisted on it.
I think it’s a good opportunity to give Anna a smart image because she takes a lot of time for the movie promo.
Anna’s role in the movie is an intellectual one, so her performance will be more convincing.”
“I’m not particularly smart.
Even when I was a student, I concentrated more on modeling than academics. ……”
“I know, it doesn’t matter if Anna is actually smart or not, as long as that image is created.
For that reason, as a condition of appearing, I have asked a range of questions and studied hard.”
“That’s right, but you know what?
You see, I often say that I can do it when you’re watching, but when I’m standing there, I can’t.”
“It’s okay, Anna is strong in the actual performance, and she always performs better during the actual performance than during practice.”
The conversation continued as if to ease Anna’s nerves as she was about to appear on a quiz show for the first time.
“Look, we’re here.”
In the meantime, they seemed to have arrived at the TV station where the recording was to take place.
He parked her car in the parking lot and headed toward the entrance reserved for the station’s staff and talent.
“Good morning! Anna-san.”
–The producer and staff of the quiz show greeted Anna and the others.
“Good morning, producer.”
Anna returned the greeting and went straight into the station, followed by the producers.
“No, thank you for appearing on our program today.”
“No, no, I just decided to appear because my manager recommended it.”
“No~, thank you so much, Shikii-san!”
Anna is an actress with numbers.
The dramas and movies she has appeared in since her comeback have all achieved high ratings and box office earnings.
The variety shows would like to see a talent with such numbers appear in them at all costs, but Anna had been refusing to appear in promotional variety shows since her return to work.
Anna finally agreed to appear.
The station wants to use this opportunity to make her appear in other programs as well, and the producer has strict orders to connect her to the next program.
That’s why they were welcoming her.
“This is Anna’s waiting room.
We have a rehearsal in half an hour, so I will pick you up when the time is up.”
The staff leaves, leaving Tomoya and the other two alone in the waiting room.
◆ ◆◇◆
The show begins, and Tomoya is in the waiting room watching the recording through the TV.
“The recording is going well.”
He did not expect the kind of funny remarks that variety shows demand, but Anna is showing a lot of naturalness, perhaps because of her nervousness.
“She was a little nervous, but she got a lot of correct answers in the quiz itself, so I guess her natural comments won’t give Anna the image of a silly person.”
“Ma~ma.”
Yuna points at Anna on the screen and says.
“That’s right, mama is working right now~”
He pats Yuna’s head and replies.
“Pa~pa.”
–She points at Tomoya this time and tells him so, and Tomoya chokes up at her words.
Tomoya and Yuna are the only two people in the waiting room.
No one can hear them.
Even so, Tomoya could not reply that it was so.
Tomoya regrets it very much.
When he had a baby with Anna, he never thought that he would be in such a state of mind.
He regrets his own shallowness and is at a loss for words because he feels sorry for Yuna.
Yuna can’t possibly understand what Tomoya is going through, and her eyes are already glued to her mother’s reflection on the screen.
All Tomoya could do was pat Yuna on the head.
◆◇◆
“Ah~ I’m so tired!”
As soon as they return to the waiting room, Anna dives onto the sofa.
“Thanks for your hard work.
How was your first variety show in a while?”
“I knew it wasn’t for me.”
“I see. ……”
“Well, but if Tomoya insists …… and gives me plenty of service later, …… I won’t even think about it. ……”
Since there was still some time before the next job, and since this waiting room was not going to be used later today, Tomoya and the others decided to take a short break before heading to their next job.
And when they left the TV on as background music…
“Next, we have the report of Mr. Higa’s infidelity.”
“Following on from last time, this time it’s an affair while his wife is pregnant. ……”
“And the other party is the same as last time, Ms. Rika Takarabe.”
“Anna must be losing her patience.”
“I think Anna will lose her patience as well.”
“I think there is a possibility that he will be forgiven this time as well.”
“Well, it is obvious that we will not get an answer even if we discuss it here.
Today, a press conference to apologize for the affair will be held, and this time Anna will be the focus of public attention as to what kind of verdict she will give.”
–Anna’s husband’s infidelity was reported.
Yes, her next job is to sit in on her husband’s adultery press conference.
“I guess entertainment reporters are very convenient, aren’t they?
Even if you leave them alone, they will expose the affair and report it, and if you try to deny it, they will bring out the hidden ball and eventually force you to confess.
It’s like a free box office.”
I lay back on the sofa, propping my head up with my hands and watching TV.
“Shall we go then, ……?”
“Yes.”
Tomoya and the others left the waiting room and headed for the venue of the press conference.
◆◇◆
Waiting room at the venue.
As Tomoya and the others enter the waiting room–
“Anju……”
–Anna’s husband had already arrived and greeted them.
“I’m sorry, Anju, that I’ve caused you such a hard time again. ……”
Anna holds out her hand.
“That kind of thing is fine, did you write what I told you?”
“Oh.”
He hands her a piece of paper and she reads it.
The paper contains details about when the affair began and when and where it took place.
Kon-kon.
“Come in.”
There is a knock on the door, and Tomoya allows her to enter.
“Anna-san, Higa-san, it’s almost time for the press conference. ……
I understand, let’s go, dear.”
Anna smiled and headed to the press conference room with her husband.
◆◆◆
The press conference was going well, although it was strange to say since it was an apology press conference.
The tough questions fly, but Anna’s husband answers them all without concealment.
And finally–
“Anna, do you intend to continue your marriage without divorce this time?”
— that question came.
How Anna would answer, even Tomoya did not know.
Anna closed her eyes and did not move a muscle.
The eyes of all the people in the hall and those who are watching the press conference through the screen are focused on Anna, directly or indirectly.
And then Anna’s eyes open.
“I think there are two kinds of people in this world.”
–She opened her mouth.
No one understands the true meaning of the words that were said.
“There are those who make mistakes, are given mercy, and reflect on them, and there are those who mistake mercy for good fortune and get carried away.
Apparently, this man was the latter. ……
It is said that the face of Buddha can be seen three times, but I am not Buddha, so he can only see Anna’s face once.
There is no way that a person who cannot reflect on the first chance can reflect on the second chance.
I now take this opportunity to divorce this person”
Her words caused a stir in the hall.
“I don’t care about alimony or child support.
I will do everything in my power to sever all ties with you.
I will of course not give you custody, and I will not allow you to have any contact with Yuna.”
Anna’s husband stared at her, stunned.
It seems that the husband, who was expecting to be forgiven this time as well, does not understand what is happening.
“I’m going to leave now.
Let’s hire a lawyer and discuss the rest with each other.”
Anna got up from her seat and started to walk away from the press conference, but stopped halfway.
“Oh yes, I forgot to mention one last very important thing.
Rika Takarabe, thank you very much for mocking me twice.
I don’t mean to thank you, but since you seem to dislike me so much, I will refrain from performing with you at all in the future.”
When she finished saying this, this time Anna left the press conference room.
For Rika Takarabe, her husband’s adulterous partner, these words were like a death sentence for her as an actress.
Anna is now a sought-after actress.
If she were to be so brazenly and justifiably denied the opportunity to perform with her, the number of jobs available to her would be greatly reduced.
On the other hand, if it is said that she will be asked to appear in movies and TV dramas in which she has not appeared, the answer is no. Anna’s difficult nature makes her difficult to work with.
Anna’s difficult personality is well known in the industry.
If they hire Takarabe, there is a good chance that Anna will not accept any work from them in the future.
No director or producer would take such a risk and hire a young, inexperienced actress with the bad reputation of adultery.
◆◆◆
After leaving the press conference, Tomoya and the others were at Anna’s house.
“I’m going home then.”
“Yeah, thanks again for your hard work today. ……”
Not knowing what else to say, Tomoya leaves Anna’s house.
He gets in his car and is about to start off when he remembers what he needs to tell Anna.
As he took out his phone and sent a text message, he heard a familiar ringtone from inside the car.
“Yuna’s playing pranks on me again: ……”
The phone had fallen at the foot of the back seat.
Recently, Yuna has a habit of taking Anna’s phone out of her bag and using it as a toy.
“I can’t help it. ……”
I want to leave it alone for now, but it is an important matter, so I decide to deliver it to Anna along with the phone.
Since Tomoya has a duplicate key from Anna, the auto lock does not require unlocking on the resident’s side, and since Tomoya and Anna are friends, he entered the room without ringing the front door or intercom.
And when he walked through the hallway and put his hand on the living room door–
“Sorry, Yuna.”
–He heard her voice.
“I’m sorry …… for making you a child without a father.
Mama will definitely make Yuna happy, …… forgive me …….
I will never stop you, I will never let you do anything you don’t want to do,……, never, never,…….”
“Ma~ma~?”
Anna hugged Yuna and so repented.
It’s a penance for depriving both her real father and her fake father.
Anna also deeply regrets giving birth to Yuna in that kind of relationship.
At that moment, through the glass of the door, Tomoya and Yuna’s eyes met.
At that moment, Yuna’s face broke–
“Pa~pa~”
— so she utters.
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry ……”
With her back to the living room door, Anna cannot see Tomoya.
She just keeps apologizing to Yuna as if she were a sinner.
Seeing Anna like that, Yuna writhed her body, escaped from her embrace, and started walking towards Tomoya.
Anna then acknowledges Tomoya’s presence.
“To- Tomoya…….”
Anna’s face is a mess of tears and a runny nose.
Noticing this, Anna turned away and wiped her tears and runny nose with a handkerchief.
“What, what…?”
“I forgot to tell you about an important matter, so I texted it to your phone and it was…… in the car.”
I show the phone in my hand to Anna.
“It was Yuna. ……”
Anna takes the phone from Tomoya.
“You emailed me about your business, right?”
“Yes.”
“I’ll check it later. ……”
“……”
“Sorry, but you’ll have to go home today. ……”
Normally, I would have respected Anna’s feelings and left here.
But my feet would not move from there.
It doesn’t go forward or backward.
It doesn’t go back, or on the other hand, it doesn’t even move towards Anna.
Just standing there, unable to do anything–
“Pa~pa!”
— Yuna comes to his feet and asks for a hug.
Tomoya picks Yuna up, sees her smile, and makes up his mind.
With Yuna in his arms, he approaches Anna and hugs her too, from behind, with his free hand–
“Let’s get married, Anna ……”
–He whispers to Anna,
Anna is surprised by his words.
“I’ve regretted it for a long time,…….
Not being able to respond every time Yuna called me a dad.
I’ve been regretting it for a long, long time, …… thinking what a thing I’ve done.
I didn’t feel like this when I was with Tomoe. ……
I feel sorry for Tomoe, but Yuna is special.
I was able to witness her birth and watch her grow up this way, and I want to keep watching over her.
I want to be a real father …….
So, I want you to marry me, Anna.
Let’s be a family, me, Anna and Yuna.
I will no longer be a part of the club.
I will never cheat on you.”
Anna lays her hand on Tomoya’s arm as he embraces her.
“Thank you …….”
At those words, Tomoya’s expression brightened.
But–
“But ……”
――At that next word, Tomoya’s face immediately turned cloudy.
“Don’t make promises you can’t keep…”
“Eh?”
“There’s no way a libido fiend like Tomoya can be satisfied with me alone.
Besides, it’s impossible for me to keep Tomoya satisfied by myself. ……
I am always exhausted after making love with Tomoya. ……
And that makes me feel sorry for Orie and the others. ……
I guess because we had sex together,……, I don’t feel like a stranger,…….
Also, Hitomi-san…….
She’s the wife of a yakuza, and why is Tomoya so close to her husband as well?
I’m afraid to say you’re still connected to Mr. Yakuza, but I guess I’m even more afraid to cut ties with him. ……
So, ……, just don’t have a new mistress ……, just promise me that. ……”
Tomoya is stunned …….
It was as if he thought he was being accepted and then rejected, but it didn’t feel that way.
Two or three things happened, and Tomoya was a little confused, but–
“Are you sure you mean OK?”
— he confirms to Anna oozingly.
Then Anna nodded and released Tomoya’s embrace and ……
“I know I’m hard headed, but please make me Tomoya’s …… bride.”